Murdoch Solves a Murder in the 21st Century
by DoctorH
Summary: A complete script/teleplay, just like an actual Murdoch episode. Murdoch's detective skills help break open a case that occurs over a hundred years later. No time travel is involved, there are no departures from the canon; it's a mystery with a touch of humour. Solution(s) included. I'd love it if they actually made an episode like this!
1. ACT 1

"MURDOCH SOLVES A MURDER IN THE 21ST CENTURY"

ACT I

(FADE IN. Exterior of a PRESENT-DAY POLICE STATION in Toronto. There are numerous indications that the setting is NOT the early 1900's: we see modern automobiles, modern attire, people using cellphones, the CN Tower in the background, etc. It is the early afternoon. CUT TO: Interior of the PRESENT-DAY POLICE STATION. There are some officers in uniform here and there, but the focus eventually turns to SIMS, a detective in plain clothes, working at her desk, using her computer. FINNEY, another detective in plain clothes, walks into the room carrying a hardbound book. FINNEY grins a mischievous grin as he approaches SIMS. SIMS is engaged in her work and does not notice FINNEY approaching.)

FINNEY  
Hey, Sims! Think fast!

(SIMS looks up and FINNEY simultaneously tosses the book at SIMS, who deftly catches it with one hand. Unamused, SIMS takes a quick look at the book. It is hardbound and apparently old. The cover is worn and the pages are yellowed.)

SIMS  
What's this?

FINNEY  
Some detective you are! It's a book!

SIMS  
I can see that. What'd you throw it at me for?

FINNEY  
Thought you might like to read it.

SIMS (looks at the cover, reads the title and authors)  
"Investigations Into The Criminal Mind." By Jennings and Crabtree.

(SIMS turns a few pages. There are various chapters with various intriguing titles. The book is obviously old.)

SIMS  
What is it, like Agatha Christie?

FINNEY  
No, it's non-fiction. It has stories about real Toronto-area criminal investigations from the late 1800's and early 1900's. I got it as a present from my wife last Christmas.

SIMS (closes the book)  
I'll look at it when I get home. (Muttering) Criminal investigations. Just what I need, when I get home from hard day at work: a book about WORK.

(SIMS puts down the book and returns her attention to the work on her desk. FINNEY pulls up a chair next to SIMS's desk.)

FINNEY (pointing to the book)  
Look at chapter eight.

SIMS (still paying attention to the work on her desk)  
Why?

FINNEY  
Trust me. Look at chapter eight.

SIMS (more forcefully)  
Why?

(FINNEY says nothing, but picks up the book and waves it at SIMS. SIMS looks up, sighs, then takes the book and leafs through the pages looking for chapter eight.)

SIMS  
Chapter eight. Chapter eight.

(SIMS finds chapter eight, then quickly thumbs through the book to see how long chapter eight is. She then reads aloud the title of chapter eight. A close-up of the page shows the title clearly.)

SIMS  
"Murdoch and the First Witness for the Defence." Who the hell is Murdoch?

FINNEY  
Murdoch is a detective with the Toronto Constabulary. That is, he WAS with the Toronto Constabulary, back in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Most of the cases in the book are his cases.

SIMS (looking through chapter eight)  
And what is it in chapter eight that I'm supposed to look at?

(SIMS stops thumbing and looks at FINNEY, evidently thinking that FINNEY is wasting her time. FINNEY grins and leans a little closer.)

FINNEY  
Chapter eight involves a murder suspect whose alibi is that he was with a certain person at the time of the murder, a certain person involved in the field of law enforcement. Does that sound familiar?

SIMS (somewhat surprised)  
Yeah. You mean like Richard Porter?

FINNEY (grinning)  
Could be. When I read the story, it made me think of what you've said about Porter. And apart from the similarity of who provides the alibis, (he smirks) there might be one or two other similarities in there as well. But I'm not gonna tell you what they are.

SIMS  
Huh. I take it this Murdoch solved the case?

(FINNEY nods. SIMS looks at her watch. She decides it's close enough to "quitting time," so she finishes up a couple of things and straightens the files on her desk. She then opens up the book to read it.)

SIMS  
Okay. Might be helpful. But I doubt it. Thanks, anyway.

FINNEY (smiling, getting up)  
Should take you less than an hour to read it. (Pointing accusingly at SIMS) No skipping to the end, now!

(FINNEY walks away as SIMS begins reading chapter eight.)

SIMS (reading aloud)  
"On the sixth day of May, a Tuesday, a concerned citizen made a frantic telephone call to the police."

(CUT TO: STATION HOUSE NO. 4, in the early 1900's. The surroundings— attire, horse-drawn vehicles, etc. — quickly establish the time period. CUT TO: MURDOCH'S OFFICE. MURDOCH is seated at his desk, comparing two documents. The door to the office is open. CRABTREE charges into the office abruptly. MURDOCH looks up.)

CRABTREE  
Sir! A concerned citizen has just made a frantic telephone call to this station, reporting what he believes to be dead body. He reports that it may have been a stabbing, sir.

MURDOCH (rising)  
Let's go, George! You have the address, I assume?

(They exit the office in a rush, and make their ways through the constables' area.)

CRABTREE  
Yes, sir.

MURDOCH  
Have you got a photographer?

CRABTREE  
Yes, sir, he's on his way to the scene, as is Dr. Ogden.

(As MURDOCH and CRABTREE move to exit the Station House, they meet BRACKENREID, who is arriving at the Station House and taking off his coat. He sees MURDOCH and CRABTREE rushing by.)

BRACKENREID  
Where are you lads off to?

MURDOCH  
We are investigating a reported stabbing, sir.

BRACKENREID (nodding)  
Happy hunting, then.

(BRACKENREID continues to remove his coat as he heads to his own office. MURDOCH and CRABTREE move to exit the STATION HOUSE. MURDOCH asks CRABTREE some questions, but MURDOCH's and CRABTREE's voices cannot be heard. FADE OUT.)


	2. ACT 2

ACT II

(FADE IN. STATION HOUSE NO. 4, early afternoon. CUT TO: BRACKENREID'S OFFICE. MURDOCH, BRACKENREID and CRABTREE are there, all standing. MURDOCH and CRABTREE are making a preliminary informal report to BRACKENREID. MURDOCH holds some unopened files. CRABTREE has his notebook out, and refers to it.)

CRABTREE  
William O'Casey, known to neighbours as "Oak." He lived in a room in the building next to the alley where he was killed. I spoke to four of his neighbours. They say he is unmarried and has no known family. They also say that they were not close friends of his, but they did give me several leads as to where I might find some people who knew Mr. O'Casey better.

MURDOCH  
Julia is doing her post-mortem now. All we know right now is that Mr. O'Casey was knifed multiple times, and that death probably occurred at about nine o'clock this morning. From the layout of the scene, Mr. O'Casey was apparently called into the alley, or lured into the alley, and attacked. There are no eyewitnesses to the attack. Mr. O'Casey's body was quite bloody, and I deem it likely that the attacker him came away with blood on his body, but no one saw any person with bloody clothes or bloody hands leaving the scene.

BRACKENREID  
Do we have anything on this O'Casey?

MURDOCH (holding up the files)  
Possibly. We have criminal records for two men by the name of William O'Casey. We do not know whether our victim is either of them.

BRACKENREID  
Was this a robbery?

MURDOCH  
That is quite possible. There was no money found on the body.

(A CONSTABLE knocks on the office door, enters, and hands a paper to MURDOCH. The CONSTABLE departs. MURDOCH checks the files in his possession, and looks at the paper again, and singles out one file.)

MURDOCH  
Ah. Finger mark analysis. We have a positive identification, and it seems (holding up one of the files) Mr. O'Casey does have a criminal record. (Looks at the file) William O'Casey, born 1878; previously arrested for burglary in Port Hope while a minor; arrested last year for assault, pleaded guilty, but served no time in prison. He was arrested again six months ago on suspicion of being involved in a burglary, and was arrested again four months ago on suspicion of being involved in another burglary; charges were laid but were subsequently dismissed in both cases.

BRACKENREID (frowning)  
Sounds like "Oak" may've been a bad boy. Why were the burglary charges dismissed?

MURDOCH (looking at the file)  
That's not exactly clear.

BRACKENREID  
And now he's dead. Maybe one of his victims decided to take revenge.

MURDOCH  
Possibly. George, you and I will check into that.

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE collect their things in preparation to exit BRACKENREID'S OFFICE.)

CRABTREE  
Yes, sir.

MURDOCH  
Let's go see whether we can find some of those people who knew "Oak" a little better.

(CUT TO: A city street, the front of a shop. Mr. KARRAS, a young man wearing shopkeeper garb and an apron, and holding a wet cloth, was apparently cleaning the front window of the shop. MURDOCH and CRABTREE are talking to KARRAS. CRABTREE has his notebook out, taking notes.)

KARRAS  
Yeah, I know "Oak." He grew up two houses away from me. We keep in touch.

MURDOCH  
I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but Mr. O'Casey has been killed. He was stabbed.

KARRAS (mildly surprised)  
Somebody killed "Oak?" Had to be Ted Wallace. He's your man. Ted hated Oak, even said one day he'd kill him.

MURDOCH  
Why? What was the nature of their dispute?

KARRAS  
There's been bad feeling between them for some time. If I remember right, it started a couple of months ago when Oak won some money from Ted in a card game. Oak told me he won the money fair and square, but Ted thought Oak cheated. So Ted killed Oak's dog. Oak had his dog tied up to a post while he did some business inside a store somewhere, and Ted came up in broad daylight, distracted the dog with a piece of meat, then stabbed the dog. Oak saw Ted do it and run away. Oak loved that dog. But Oak couldn't go to the police, because he'd, uh, had some trouble with the police in the past. So Oak retaliated by— (stops talking, moves eyes down)

MURDOCH  
He retaliated how? (seeing KARRAS's reluctance to talk) Mr. Karras, "Oak" is dead. If he retaliated by doing something illegal, he can no longer be criminally punished for it.

KARRAS (eyes down, nodding)  
Yeah, I guess it doesn't matter anymore. (looks up) Oak set fire to Ted's house. Nobody got hurt. But the house was pretty damaged. Oak said that made things even, but Ted didn't see it that way. Word got around that Ted was madder than ever, and he'd get back at Oak. So Oak said, "If you ever find me murdered someday, then Ted Wallace did it." Now, that's an exact quote.

(CRABTREE records what KARRAS said. CUT TO: a public house. MURDOCH, CRABTREE and a young barkeep, SHAY, sit at a table in the establishment. There are no customers in the public house.)

SHAY  
Arrest Ted Wallace. He was the only enemy that Oak had, as far as I know, and we all knew we had to watch out for Wallace. Oak even said, "If somebody murders me, it was Ted Wallace that did it."

(CRABTREE records what SHAY said. MURDOCH and CRABTREE exchange glances. CUT TO: exterior of a business. MURDOCH and CRABTREE speak with LONNIGAN, who was in the process of doing some repair work on a storefront.)

LONNIGAN  
Oak said this: "If I get killed, Ted Wallace did it." He said those words exactly.

(CUT TO: Upper body of Mrs. STOPPARD, a young woman with a pram, evidently speaking to MURDOCH and CRABTREE.)

STOPPARD  
"Ted Wallace murdered me." That's what he said.

(CUT TO: Shoulders-up view of Mr. JONES, a professional-looking young man.)

JONES  
Ted Wallace.

(CUT TO: Face of MOORE, a young man, possibly a vicar, but in any event recognizable as clergy by his collar.)

MOORE  
If I were you, detectives, I'd arrest Ted Wallace.

(CUT TO: MURDOCH and CRABTREE walking down the street. They walk purposefully, as though they are going somewhere.)

MURDOCH (wryly)  
Tell me, George, if you were a detective, who do you think our main suspect ought to be?

(CRABTREE laughs. CUT TO: Ext. of a rundown house, WALLACE'S HOUSE. Part of the house shows severe fire damage, which has been badly repaired. There are several trees behind the house. MURDOCH holds up a criminal record for "Edward Theodore Wallace." The criminal record includes a photograph of a man with a mustache. MURDOCH turns to CRABTREE.)

MURDOCH  
This was the address he gave after he was arrested two months ago.

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE approach the house and knock on the door. The door opens and a man's face peers out. The man is WALLACE. He is clean-shaven and for a moment does not resemble the man in the photograph.)

MURDOCH  
Mr. Wallace? Mr. Ted Wallace?

WALLACE (cautiously)  
Yes?

MURDOCH (showing his badge)  
Detective William Murdock, Toronto Constabulary. This (gesturing to CRABTREE) is Constable George Crabtree. May we speak with you?

WALLACE  
What about?

MURDOCH  
We're making inquiry into the death of William O'Casey.

WALLACE  
Never heard of him.

MURDOCH  
He was known to many people as "Oak."

(WALLACE's jaw drops. He stands still for a second or two, and then opens the door wider.)

WALLACE  
Oak's dead?

MURDOCH  
He is, sir.

WALLACE  
I didn't do it! I just want to say that right up front! I didn't do it!

MURDOCH  
May we come in?

WALLACE  
Are you here to arrest me? I hated Oak, I make no secret of that. But I am not going to get hanged for something I didn't do!

MURDOCH  
Mr. Wallace, where were you this morning at about nine o'clock?

WALLACE (suspicious)  
Is that when Oak got killed?

MURDOCH (pressing)  
Where were you at nine o'clock, sir?

(WALLACE suddenly smiles broadly, laughs, and opens up the door. Even though the door is now open, MURDOCH and CRABTREE do not enter.)

WALLACE  
Where was I? I was with a COP, that's where I was! Ha! I was with a POLICEMAN!

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE exchange glances.)

MURDOCH  
I presume this policeman will verify your story?

WALLACE  
You can ask him yourself. His name was Bracken— something. Brackenberry? No, Bracken—

MURDOCH (stunned)  
Brackenreid?

WALLACE  
Yeah, that sounds right. Mustache, fat hindquarters, going bald, a Yorkshireman. A real POMPOUS ASS! But also a real COP. He's my alibi. Go talk to him!

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE exchange glances. MURDOCH looks uncomfortable. CRABTREE looks almost ill. FADE OUT.)


	3. ACT 3

ACT III

(FADE IN. Exterior of the PRESENT-DAY POLICE STATION. It is early evening. CUT TO: Interior of the POLICE STATION. SIMS is at her desk, reading the book and simultaneously eating a sandwich. FINNEY approaches. SIMS looks up.)

FINNEY  
Well, what do you think?

SIMS  
I'm not very far into the story, but I haven't seen many similarities so far. The victim in this story (shaking the book to indicate it) was stabbed. Not like the Porter case, where Donovan got shot. And the detective here (shaking the book) identified the prime suspect almost immediately. Cripes, virtually every friend of the victim accused the same guy.

FINNEY  
Yeah, yeah, yeah, the details of the crimes are different. But this business with the alibis?

SIMS  
I'm just getting to that. This suspect's alibi (shaking the book to indicate it) is supposedly a cop.

FINNEY (smiles knowingly)  
Just like Porter's alibi, eh?

SIMS  
I don't know, yet.

(SIMS returns to reading. CUT TO: STATION HOUSE NO. 4, late afternoon or early evening. CUT TO: BRACKENREID'S OFFICE. MURDOCH, BRACKENREID and CRABTREE are there. BRACKENREID is the only one that is seated. BRACKENREID is in a good mood.)

BRACKENREID  
So everybody points the finger at this Wallace fellow, do they?

MURDOCH  
Yes, sir. The witnesses who know Mr. O'Casey well were unanimous in directing us to Ted Wallace. And so we went to talk to Mr. Wallace.

BRACKENREID  
You talked to him. Did you arrest him?

MURDOCH (uncomfortably)  
No, sir. The accusations made by Mr. O'Casey's friends are only hearsay, and— well, he did speak with us voluntarily, sir. He denied killing Mr. O'Casey—

BRACKENREID (sarcastic)  
Now, THERE'S a big surprise.

MURDOCH  
And he gave us what seemed to be a formidable alibi. Before we questioned him at length, we wanted to check his alibi with you first, sir.

BRACKENREID  
Eh?

MURDOCH  
YOU are his alibi, sir.

BRACKENREID (suddenly dead serious)  
Me?

MURDOCH  
Mr. Wallace says that, at nine o'clock this morning, he was with you. If I remember correctly, you were planning to speak to a group of young men. Perhaps one of them was Mr. Wallace?

(BRACKENREID tries to remember what happened that morning.)

BRACKENREID  
Jonny Gray was worried about his boy, Jonny Junior, getting into trouble with the law. He asked me to have a word with Jonny Junior and three of his friends, to try to put the fear of God into them, to straighten them out. That's what I was doing from about eight-thirty to about nine-fifteen.

MURDOCH  
Was Mr. Wallace present?

BRACKENREID (thinking)  
I don't remember.

MURDOCH  
Could you perhaps give a physical description of the people with whom you met?

BRACKENREID  
The only one I could describe for sure is Jonny Junior; he looks like his father. As for the others, I can't really recall. They were all young men, all clean-shaven, all average height and build. They listened politely to what I had to say; they didn't say much. Didn't ask any questions. I know that's not much of a description.

CRABTREE  
When we talked with Mr. Wallace, he was able to describe you, sir.

BRACKENREID  
Really? What did he say?

CRABTREE  
He said you were a pomp—

(MURDOCH interrupts before CRABTREE can say anything embarrassing.)

MURDOCH  
He said enough that we were satisfied that he knew who you were.

(An idea hits BRACKENREID. He begins rummaging through his pockets.)

BRACKENREID  
Wait a minute! I've got the names of the lads right here!

(He finds a slip of paper, and unfolds it, and gets ready to read the names)

BRACKENREID  
There we are! These are the lads Jonny wanted me to talk to. (puts on glasses) All right. Jonathan Gray, Junior. Stewart Middleton. Patrick Burton. And— (stops reading, stunned)

MURDOCH  
Ted Wallace?

(BRACKENREID nods.)

BRACKENREID (indicating the slip)  
It says "Edward" here.

MURDOCH  
"Ted" is a common shortened version of "Edward."

BRACKENREID  
That it is.

(BRACKENREID takes off his glasses. The alibi suddenly seems pretty good to him.)

BRACKENREID  
So I guess I was talking to Ted Wallace this morning at nine o'clock.

(Silence for a moment.)

CRABTREE  
Sir, I do not want to suggest that I am as knowledgeable as Dr. Ogden, but my understanding is that time of death is not a precise thing. Mr. Wallace could have killed Mr. O'Casey before or after meeting with Inspector Brackenreid.

MURDOCH  
Your meeting, sir: did anyone arrive late or leave early?

BRACKENREID  
No.

MURDOCH  
Where was your meeting, sir?

BRACKENREID  
Jonny's house. It's at least half an hour away by horse or carriage.

(CUT TO: THE MORGUE, next morning. OGDEN reviews her records. MURDOCH and CRABTREE stand close by.)

OGDEN  
Time of death was about nine o'clock, probably a little bit before. Give or take half an hour each way.

MURDOCH  
That narrow time interval would seem to give further support to Mr. Wallace's alibi. There is no way he could have been with Inspector Brackenreid AND been at the scene of the crime, either before or after his meeting with Inspector Brackenreid.

OGDEN  
Do you know whether Mr. Wallace owned a hunting knife? It appears that a hunting knife was the weapon used. The victim was both slashed and stabbed. There are defensive wounds, indicating the victim tried to fight back, at least at first. He may have been disabled by the slashes; he almost certainly was killed by one of the stabs. From the pattern of the wounds, and from bruises on the body, it appears that the attack was fairly rapid, you might even say frantic or vicious. The victim was stabbed, knocked down, slashed repeatedly, and stabbed repeatedly.

MURDOCH  
The assailant would have been bloodied, no doubt.

OGDEN  
Yes, almost certainly.

CRABTREE (recalling something)  
Sir, do you recall what we were told about Mr. O'Casey's dog?

(MURDOCH nods; he remembers. CUT TO: WALLACE'S HOUSE, later that morning. WALLACE sits in a broken-down chair, questioned by MURDOCH, who stands. CRABTREE, also standing, takes notes.)

WALLACE  
You checked, didn't you? That Officer Brackenbush supported my alibi, didn't he?

MURDOCH (correcting)  
It's Inspector Brackenreid, and yes, he seemed to support what you said.

WALLACE (leans back, relieved)  
Thank God. I was worried for a while; thought he might tell you officers a different story.

MURDOCH (does not like the insinuation)  
Inspector Brackenreid does not falsify evidence.

WALLACE  
Yeah. Well, I'm not going to be arrested, then?

MURDOCH  
I still have a few questions for you: is it true that, some weeks ago, you stabbed Mr. O'Casey's dog?

WALLACE (lightly)  
Is that a crime?

MURDOCH  
Did you stab his dog?

WALLACE  
Yes, I did. The dog tried to bite me, and I stabbed it. It was self-defence. Nobody can say otherwise.

(MURDOCH's expression suggests he doesn't believe a word of what he's just been told.)

MURDOCH  
I take it then, you were carrying a knife when you encountered the dog.

WALLACE (reluctantly has to admit it)  
Yeah. I was.

MURDOCH  
What kind of knife?

WALLACE (hesitantly)  
I don't know. It was an old hunting knife, I think. I don't have it anymore. You can search my house, search it right NOW if you want, you won't find that knife or any knife like it.

MURDOCH  
I'm sure you're right about that.

(CUT TO: EXT. OF JONNY GRAY'S HOUSE, a much nicer place of residence. A horse-drawn carriage pulls up. MURDOCH is driving. CRABTREE has a stopwatch or watch. The carriage comes to a stop in front of the house.)

MURDOCH  
How long, George?

CRABTREE (checks the watch)  
Thirty-six minutes, from where Mr. O'Casey's body was found, sir.

MURDOCH  
It's beginning to look to me as though Mr. Wallace had a motive to commit the murder, and perhaps the means for committing the murder, but—

CRABTREE  
No window of opportunity to commit the murder.

(The front door to JONNY GRAY'S HOUSE opens, and GRAY senior appears, flanked by three young men, who are Gray JUNIOR, MIDDLETON and BURTON. CUT TO: A PARLOUR, INSIDE JONNY GRAY'S HOUSE. MURDOCH, CRABTREE, JUNIOR, MIDDLETON and BURTON are all seated. GRAY stands by the door to the parlour with his arms folded.)

MURDOCH  
So, you all agree that Ted Wallace was here. He was right here in this room the entire time that Inspector Brackenreid was here.

(Heads nod.)

MIDDLETON  
Oh, yes, if you mean Teddy, Teddy was here, the whole time, with us.

JUNIOR  
He was. Teddy was here.

MURDOCH  
You are all of his friends, of course, vouching for the whereabouts of another friend.

GRAY (chiming in)  
Well, I'M not his friend. (confidently) Teddy was here, all right.

(MURDOCH accepts the comment from the elder GRAY with a modest nod.)

MIDDLETON  
Is Teddy in some kind of trouble?

(MURDOCH is hesitant to answer. JUNIOR, MIDDLETON and BURTON all look at CRABTREE, and he feels he has to say something.)

CRABTREE  
He is, that is, he WAS a suspect in a murder investigation.

(JUNIOR, MIDDLETON and BURTON are surprised; they look at one another, then at MURDOCH and CRABTREE.)

MIDDLETON  
Who was Teddy supposed to have murdered?

MURDOCH  
A man named William O'Casey.

(JUNIOR, MIDDLETON and BURTON are puzzled. They look at one another and shrug.)

JUNIOR  
Who?

MURDOCH  
William O'Casey. That was his real name. He was known to many people simply as "Oak."

(JUNIOR, MIDDLETON and BURTON remain puzzled; they shake their heads. GRAY shrugs, indicating he doesn't know the name, either. MURDOCH and CRABTREE look at one another.)

MURDOCH  
Are any of you aware of the— the feud between this "Oak" and Mr. Wallace?

(JUNIOR, MIDDLETON and BURTON shake their heads.)

BURTON  
He could've had a "feud," I guess. He never talked about it with us.

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE don't know what to make of this. FADE OUT.)


	4. ACT 4

ACT IV

(FADE IN. Exterior of the PRESENT-DAY POLICE STATION. It is now dark. CUT TO: Interior of the POLICE STATION. SIMS is at her desk, reading the book and drinking coffee. FINNEY approaches. SIMS looks up.)

FINNEY  
How's that story going?

SIMS (laughs a little)  
Okay, I can sure see why you think the Porter case is similar. Porter had LOADS of motive, and the killing looked like a revenge killing, et cetera, et cetera. There was a lot of hearsay and circumstantial evidence pointing to Porter. But when I check, I find that Porter has a kick-ass alibi! Porter says he was with Constable Cross at the time of the murder, and he gave a perfect description of what Cross looked like. And then Constable Cross backed Porter's story up, a hundred percent. We know that if we arrest Porter and charge him, the first witness for the defence will be Cross, a COP. (holds up the book) THAT'S pretty similar to the case in this book.

FINNEY (grinning)  
It gets better. Read on!

(CUT TO: STATION HOUSE NO. 4. CUT TO: BRACKENREID'S OFFICE. MURDOCH, BRACKENREID and CRABTREE are there. BRACKENREID is the only one that is seated. BRACKENREID is in a fairly good mood.)

BRACKENREID  
Have you ruled out Ted Wallace as a suspect, then?

MURDOCH (uncomfortably)  
Not entirely, sir.

BRACKENREID  
I know he was your prime suspect. I know that all of O'Casey's friends think he did it. But you know that if he gets charged and prosecuted, I'll be the very first witness for the defence. And I'll have to tell the truth, Murdoch. (dead serious) I'll have to say that he was with me at the time.

MURDOCH  
Of course.

BRACKENREID  
Seems to me you ought to be looking at who else might've done it. Maybe Wallace "persuaded" somebody else to commit the crime, at a time when he knew he'd have an unshakable alibi.

MURDOCH  
Possibly. But I think it would be difficult to persuade someone to commit a murder as vicious, as "personal," as this one was.

BRACKENREID  
Maybe if the money was right.

MURDOCH  
That might require a rather substantial amount of money, and I did not get the impression that Mr. Wallace had very much cash at his disposal. Would you agree, George?

CRABTREE  
Yes, sir, I would.

BRACKENREID  
Nevertheless, I think we have to strike Wallace off our list of suspects, don't we?

MURDOCH (reluctantly)  
I— think perhaps we do.

BRACKENREID  
We know O'Casey had a criminal record, don't we? And I thought maybe one of his victims decided to take revenge on him. Maybe that's what happened. Also, we thought at first this might have been a killing in the course of a robbery, didn't we? Maybe that's what it was. Maybe O'Casey didn't even know the fellow who killed him. Well, it seems to me that the two of you have some tough police work ahead of you.

MURDOCH  
Yes, sir.

BRACKENREID  
Close the door on the way out, would you?

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE take the cue and leave BRACKENREID's OFFICE. CRABTREE closes the office door. As they step away from the office, MURDOCH talks to CRABTREE.)

MURDOCH  
George, let's go to my office. We need to formulate a plan.

CRABTREE  
Yes, sir.

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE cross the constables' area and enter MURDOCH's OFFICE. MURDOCH closes the door and motions for CRABTREE to be seated. While CRABTREE takes a seat, MURDOCH sits behind his desk.)

CRABTREE  
I am not quite sure where to begin, sir. We have no witnesses, no murder weapon, no other physical evidence—

MURDOCH  
I am not quite ready to let go of Ted Wallace as a suspect. Not yet, anyway.

CRABTREE  
Sir? Wallace's alibi seems to be iron-clad.

MURDOCH  
Yes, it does. But something is not right. We questioned a lot of Mr. O'Casey's friends. They were ALL familiar with Mr. O'Casey's dispute with Mr. Wallace. But when we questioned Mr. Wallace's friends, NONE of them had much familiarity with the dispute with Mr. O'Casey. They didn't even know who Mr. O'Casey was.

CRABTREE  
Yes, sir, that WAS odd. Mr. Wallace said something like, "I made no secret of my disagreement with Oak," but he apparently kept it secret from some of his closest friends. But I don't know what significance to attach to that. Perhaps he was protecting them, he didn't want them to get involved?

MURDOCH  
And there was something else. There's one thing I want to do before I discard all the work we've done so far. I want to talk to Stewart Middleton again.

CRABTREE  
One of Mr. Wallace's friends?

MURDOCH  
Yes. There was something he said that— well, it's probably nothing. But I can't convince myself to let it go.

(CUT TO: A WAREHOUSE. MIDDLETON is dressed in work clothes and is moving boxes onto a cart. MURDOCH and CRABTREE approach. MIDDLETON sees them but keeps working.)

MURDOCH  
Mr. Middleton! May we have a word with you? We spoke with your employer, and he said it would be all right if we asked you some questions. Would it be all right with you if we asked you some questions?

(MIDDLETON stops working and wipes his brow. MURDOCH removes his hat. CRABTREE removes his constable's helmet.)

MIDDLETON  
Yeah, it's all right with me. What do you need to know?

MURDOCH  
When we spoke earlier, I told you that we were investigating the whereabouts of Ted Wallace.

MIDDLETON  
Uh-huh, yeah.

MURDOCH  
And you said something like, "Do you mean Teddy?"

MIDDLETON  
Well, that's who I assumed you were talking about. You were asking who was with Pat and Jonny and me, over at Jonny's house, when that Police Inspector came to lecture us about citizenship and staying out of jail and all that malarkey. Teddy was with us. If you're trying to blame that murder on Teddy, that's just wrong.

MURDOCH  
I understand. But that's not quite what I want to talk to you about. When you said, "Do you mean Teddy?"— (pause) Mr. Middleton, how many Ted Wallaces do you know?

MIDDLETON  
Oh, that. It was Teddy who was with us when we met with the Inspector. That's who I thought you were interested in. Ted wasn't there. Teddy was.

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE exchange glances.)

MURDOCH  
Just so I'm clear about this, you know a "Ted Wallace" and a "Teddy Wallace."

MIDDLETON  
Yeah.

MURDOCH  
And they are two different people.

MIDDLETON  
Yeah, they're different guys. Their names sound similar, but they spell them different. Teddy's last name is spelled "W-A-L-L-I-S," I think. I went to school with both of them. Some of our teachers used to get these guys mixed up 'cause of the similarity of names.

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE realize they are onto something. CRABTREE pulls out his notebook and begins scribbling some notes.)

MURDOCH  
When was the last time you spoke to Ted— not Teddy— Wallace?

MIDDLETON  
Last week, maybe. I made deliveries to the place where Ted works. We usually talk for a bit.

MURDOCH  
What did you talk about, when you met with TED last week?

MIDDLETON  
I don't remember. Just things.

MURDOCH  
Did you by any chance mention to TED that you were going to have a meeting with Inspector Brackenreid?

MIDDLETON (thinking on it, then laughing)  
I think I did. Yeah, pretty sure I did. Yeah.

MURDOCH  
Did you mention the date and time of the meeting with Inspector Brackenreid, and the place where it would be held?

MIDDLETON  
The date and time, yeah. And I mentioned that Jonny's old man was setting up this whole silly thing.

MURDOCH  
And did you, by any chance, mention that TEDDY would be there?

MIDDLETON  
May have, I don't remember. But even if I didn't, Ted knows that I'm good friends with Teddy, and that if a cop was coming to preach law and order at us, Teddy would have to be there.

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE exchange glances. CUT TO: Exterior of the WAREHOUSE. MURDOCH and CRABTREE talk as they walk toward their bicycles, which are parked under a shade tree. MURDOCH wears his hat, CRABTREE his helmet.)

CRABTREE  
I should have noticed it, sir. His friends used the name "Teddy" but everyone else used the name "Ted."

MURDOCH  
That's an understandable oversight, George.

CRABTREE (checking his notes)  
I think I almost have it, sir. Through Mr. Middleton, TED Wallace finds out that TEDDY Wallis will be meeting with Inspector Brackenreid at a particular day and time. TED Wallace decides to kill Mr. O'Casey at this particular day and time, and use Inspector Brackenreid as his alibi. TED Wallace goes to Mr. O'Casey's abode, and finds him outside or lures him outside somehow, and lures into the alley, and stabs Mr. O'Casey. And when he is questioned, as he surely knew he would be, TED Wallace gives the police the false alibi.

MURDOCH  
Yes.

CRABTREE  
Inspector Brackenreid, quite naturally, does not know that there are two "Ted Wallaces," so he confirms the alibi.

MURDOCH  
Yes.

CRABTREE  
And because of Inspector Brackenreid's position and status, his word is not going to be questioned. Therefore, we accept the alibi as valid, and we dismiss Ted Wallace as a suspect.

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE reach their bicycles and stand near the bicycles.)

MURDOCH  
And even if we do not dismiss him as a suspect, we give Ted Wallace time.

CRABTREE (not sure what Murdoch means)  
Yes, sir, absent any solid evidence against him, and with what seems to be a very good alibi, he stays at liberty for at least a while. But there is still one thing that we do not know, sir.

MURDOCH  
And that is?

CRABTREE  
If TED Wallace did NOT actually MEET Inspector Brackenreid that morning, how was he able to DESCRIBE Inspector Brackenreid so— correctly?

MURDOCH (shrugs slightly)  
It is possible that he may have met, or seen, Inspector Brackenreid in person at some time in the past. And even if there had been no such personal encounter, Inspector Brackenreid has had his share of publicity, hasn't he, George? He ran for public office. He has had his photograph in the newspapers from time to time. One can see from the photographs that he is a large man and that he has a moustache. At least some of the newspaper reports have mentioned that he is a Yorkshireman.

CRABTREE  
But Ted Wallace described more than what you can see in a photograph, sir. He described the Inspector's demeanor accurately, sir.

MURDOCH (laughs)  
Yes, he called him a "pompous ass."

CRABTREE (smirking, not sure whether he is at liberty to laugh)  
Yes, sir.

MURDOCH  
George, the term "pompous ass" is one that can be applied to ANYONE in a position of authority. Even you and me. "Pompous ass" is just a conclusory judgment besmirching a person's character; it is an insult that doesn't really describe anything specific.

CRABTREE  
I see, sir.

MURDOCH (mounting his bicycle)  
Let's get back to the Station House, and then prepare to arrest Ted Wallace. Let us hope he thinks he is safe for the moment, and that he is not in a rush to flee. And George: I think we'd better have some additional constables assisting us.

CRABTREE (mounting his bicycle)  
That we should, sir.

(MURDOCH and CRABTREE pedal away from the warehouse. FADE OUT.)


	5. ACT 5

ACT V

(FADE IN. Exterior of the PRESENT-DAY POLICE STATION. It is still dark. CUT TO: Interior of the POLICE STATION. SIMS is at her desk, reading the book and making a few notes on a pad. FINNEY approaches with a cup of coffee. SIMS looks up.)

FINNEY  
Almost done? Looks like you've only got a page or two left.

SIMS  
Almost done. You weren't kidding about the similarities. THEY (indicating the book) had "Ted" Wallace and "Teddy" Wallis, and WE have "Rick" Porter and "Rich" Porter. The prime suspect gives the alibi where he says he was with a police officer, and gives a physical description of the officer, as if he'd actually met him. And the officer confirms the alibi!

FINNEY  
Yeah, I thought you'd find those things interesting; pretty spooky coincidences.

SIMS  
Yeah. But there's one thing THEY (indicating the book) have, that we don't. THEY had a witness to the effect that the two Teds knew each other, and the suspect was able to find out through that witness about the other Ted's meeting with the officer, so he could plan to commit the crime at the time the meeting was taking place.

FINNEY (wincing)  
Oooh. That's a pretty big missing piece to the puzzle. We also don't know how was Porter was able to know what Constable Cross looked like. In that story (pointing to the book), the suspect probably saw the Inspector's picture in the newspaper.

SIMS  
Yeah. (realizing something) But maybe WE have something that THEY don't! What's the 21st Century version of a newspaper? In the 21st Century, if you want to find out about someone in your town who might have the same name as you, what might you do?

(SIMS looks at the computer on her desk.)

FINNEY (catching on, pointing to the book)  
I think you better finish that chapter. There's one more thing that they did, that we'll have to do.

(CUT TO: Exterior of WALLACE'S HOUSE. MURDOCH and CRABTREE approach the house with the assistance of Constable HIGGINS and three other constables. MURDOCH gives a wave. HIGGINS nods, and he and CONSTABLE ONE head to the back of the house. MURDOCH approaches the front door with CRABTREE, flanked by CONSTABLE TWO and CONSTABLE THREE. MURDOCH knocks on the door.)

MURDOCH (loudly)  
Mr. Wallace? Toronto Constabulary! (knocks again) Mr. Wallace?

(There is a sound of a distant struggle off-screen [SFX], with a faint shout of "You are under arrest!" MURDOCH, CRABTREE, and CONSTABLE TWO rush to the back of the house. With a gesture, MURDOCH commands CONSTABLE THREE to stay near the front of the house, and he does. MURDOCH, CRABTREE, and CONSTABLE TWO get to the back of the house and find HIGGINS and CONSTABLE ONE wrestling with WALLACE. WALLACE strikes HIGGINS, who loses his grip on WALLACE. CONSTABLE TWO jumps in to assist CONSTABLE ONE, and these two CONSTABLES restrain WALLACE. CRABTREE rushes to help HIGGINS.)

CRABTREE  
Are you all right, Henry?

HIGGINS (rubbing the place where he was struck)  
I think so.

MURDOCH  
Mr. Ted Wallace, you are under the arrest for the murder of William O'Casey. (to CRABTREE and HIGGINS) George, you and Henry get started on the search. Check these woods here. Look for any sign of recently disturbed earth.

(WALLACE frantically begins to struggle, and nearly breaks free, but the CONSTABLES manage to retake WALLACE and restrain him. MURDOCH sees all this.)

MURDOCH  
Check the woods, George, Henry.

(CRABTREE and HIGGINS go off to do just that. WALLACE is worried. CUT TO: STATION HOUSE NO. 4. CUT TO: INTERROGATION ROOM. WALLACE is in the chair, with CONSTABLE ONE standing behind him. MURDOCH and CRABTREE are there. WALLACE is poker-faced.)

MURDOCH  
As I'm sure you know, Mr. Wallace, we have got over twenty witnesses who will testify that you planned to cause harm to Mr. O'Casey, and some of them will swear that they personally witnessed you threaten to kill him.

(WALLACE says nothing, won't look directly at MURDOCH.)

MURDOCH  
When we came to arrest you, you tried to flee. Flight implies guilt, Mr. Wallace.

(WALLACE says nothing, but takes a deep breath.)

MURDOCH  
It may interest you to know what our officers found buried in the ground when they searched the woods near your house.

(WALLACE says nothing.)

MURDOCH  
We found buried a hunting knife wrapped in a bloody shirt. Our medical examiner is making a determination as we speak as to whether this hunting knife could have been the knife used to kill Mr. O'Casey.

(WALLACE says nothing but he seems to be breaking down emotionally.)

MURDOCH  
The truth, this time. Where were you two days ago, at nine in the morning?

WALLACE  
I told you already.

MURDOCH  
What you told us was that you were with Inspector Brackenreid. Is that the truth?

WALLACE  
I've got nothing more to say.

(The door to the INTERROGATION ROOM opens and BRACKENREID enters the INTERROGATION ROOM. BRACKENREID saunters over to WALLACE, and nods to CONSTABLE ONE to stay on his guard; CONSTABLE ONE nods in acknowledgement and puts a hand on WALLACE's shoulder. BRACKENREID holds in one hand a photograph of WALLACE with a mustache, same as the one in his criminal file.)

BRACKENREID  
I've met Teddy Wallis. Teddy Wallis is clean-shaven. And so are you. (showing WALLACE the photo) But a couple o' months ago, you had a really fine mustache. When did you shave it off, eh? (pause) You must've guessed that there was a pretty good chance that I'd say Teddy Wallis was clean-shaven. If we questioned you, and if you had a mustache, that would give the game away, wouldn't it? Eh?

(WALLACE says nothing; he won't look at BRACKENREID. BRACKENREID looks at WALLACE from all angles.)

BRACKENREID  
That mustache: must've taken you months to grow it. Why'd you shave it off, eh?

(WALLACE still won't look at BRACKENREID.)

BRACKENREID (barking)  
You better look at me, boy, I'm talking to you!

(WALLACE looks up at BRACKENREID, briefly, and then lowers his gaze.)

BRACKENREID  
I've never seen you before in my life.

(BRACKENREID "gets in WALLACE's face"; BRACKENREID moves in close enough to strike WALLACE; though BRACKENREID does nothing more than nudge WALLACE annoyingly.)

BRACKENREID  
What do you think of your alibi, now, eh? (nudges WALLACE) EH? Not so iron-clad, now, is it? Who's gonna testify in your defence now, eh?

(BRACKENREID steps away from WALLACE.)

BRACKENREID (to MURDOCH)  
Lock him up.

(BRACKENREID exits the INTERROGATION ROOM. CUT TO: PRESENT-DAY POLICE STATION in Toronto. CUT TO: Interior of PRESENT-DAY POLICE STATION, an INTERROGATION ROOM. The INTERROGATION ROOM is well-lit, and the door is open. A table in the centre of the room has a stack of photographs on it. SIMS and FINNEY are there, with Constable CROSS in uniform. CROSS has a very distinctive appearance. SIMS carries some sheets of paper.)

CROSS  
You're going to ask me about Rich Porter, again, aren't you?

SIMS  
Yup. First, Constable, (showing one piece of paper to CROSS), do you know what this is?

(The piece of paper is a printout from an Internet web site for a local newspaper. The headline is "Toronto Constable Wins Raffle." There is a photograph of CROSS in his uniform, an official police department photo.)

CROSS  
Huh. It's a story in one of the local newspapers about how I won first prize in the charity raffle. Huh. Never saw this before. Where'd you get it?

SIMS  
We searched the Internet for recent local news stories involving anyone named "Richard Porter." As you can see, the story mentions that you are a constable in Toronto. It has your photo.

CROSS  
You think that Porter was able to describe to you what I looked like because he saw my photograph, don't you?

SIMS  
If he hasn't deleted his computer's search history, we might be able to find that out. The story says nothing about Richard Porter, except that he won the third prize, his age, and that he's from Toronto. The story also says when and where the prizes would be awarded.

CROSS (looking at the paper)  
Yeah.

SIMS  
And you got to meet this third-prize winner, Richard Porter?

CROSS  
As I've told you before, yes, I got to meet Rich Porter. Also, as I've already told you, we all had to bring some photo ID to claim our prizes; and I recall distinctly that Rich brought along his passport. He was who he said he was.

SIMS  
And do you recall distinctly what Mr. Porter looked like?

CROSS  
Dark hair, average height, in his 30s, built like a football player. I'd know him if I saw him again.

SIMS  
Okay. (spreading out photographs stacked on the table) Is Richard Porter in one of these photographs?

(CROSS looks at the photographs carefully. The photographs all show men, all about the same age all having dark hair. After CROSS examines some of the photographs, he lays them aside on the table. SIMS and FINNEY watch, unmoving, not wanting to give any hint to CROSS as to what he should or should not do.)

CROSS  
No. None of these appears to be the Richard Porter I've met.

SIMS  
You know what I need to ask next.

CROSS (smiling)  
Yeah, you need to ask me: Am I certain? (dead serious) As far as I know, I've never seen any of these guys before in my life. BUT— to be really certain, I'd rather not make an identification based on photographs.

(One of the photographs tossed aside by CROSS is facing the audience right-side up. It is the face of PORTER. CUT TO: An apartment door— with no peephole— opening, and PORTER, whose unshaven face matches the picture very closely, sticks out his head. PORTER might be a little intoxicated.)

SIMS  
Richard "Rick" Porter?

(SIMS is accompanied by several large and armed OFFICERS. Although it is not immediately apparent, CROSS is part of the group. SIMS holds legal documents in her hand for PORTER to see. He gets little chance to examine them carefully, because the OFFICERS immediately take control of PORTER and the premises.)

SIMS  
We have a warrant for your arrest, and a warrant for search of the premises.

(With a flurry of activity, the OFFICERS remove PORTER and begin to move through the premises. In the background is a laptop computer, which the OFFICERS secure.)

PORTER  
What the fuh—?

(CROSS steps out and looks at PORTER in the face. PORTER is still disoriented.)

CROSS  
This is not the man who won third prize in the raffle.

SIMS  
Thought we'd be satisfied when you told us to check with that police officer, did you? Well, Murdoch wasn't satisfied, and neither are we.

PORTER  
Who the hell is Murdoch?

(PORTER gets taken away, with SIMS and CROSS following. FADE OUT.)

THE END


End file.
